Strain Detail: ICGN mice

ICR-derived glomerulonephritis (ICGN) mice, a novel inbred strain of mice with a hereditary nephrotic syndrome, were established in the National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID, Tokyo, Japan) and considered a good model of human idiopathic nephrotic syndrome. Recently, we found that the tensin2 gene of the ICGN mouse possessed an 8-nucleotide deletion mutation in exon 18, leading to a frameshift and giving rise to a terminal codon at a premature position (Ref.1).

The ICGN mice develop proteinuria, hypoproteinemia and hyperlipidemia, enemia and severe systemic edema. Conventional histological analyses demonstrated thickened glomerular basement membranes, loss of podocyte foot processes, enlargement of the mesangial area accompanied by cellular proliferation, enlargement of tubules, and tubulointerstitial lesions. This strain would make a contribution to clarify the mechanisms of idiopathic nephrotic syndrome and develop new therapies for nephrotic syndrome (Ref, 2-6).

1. Cho AR, Uchio-Yamada K, Torigai T, Miyamoto T, Miyoshi I, Matsuda J, Kurosawa T, Kon Y, Asano A, Sasaki N, and Agui T. (2006) Deficiency of the tensin2 gene in the ICGN mouse: an animal model for congenital nephrotic syndrome. Mamm. Genome 17(5):407-16. [PMID:16688531]
2. Ogura A, Asano T, Matsuda J, Noguchi Y, Yamamoto Y, Takano K, and Nakagawa M. (1989) Development of nephrotic ICGN mice — the origin, reproductive ability, and incidence of glomerulonephritis. Exp. Anim. 38(4):349-352. [PMID:2806394]
3. Ogura A, Asano T, Matsuda J, Takano K, Nakagawa M, and Fukui M. (1989) Characteristics of mutant mice (ICGN) with spontaneous renal lesions: a new model for human nephrotic syndrome. Lab. Anim. 23(2):169-74. [PMID:2523501]
4. Ogura A, Asano T, Suzuki O, Yamamoto Y, Noguchi Y, Kawaguchi H, and Yamaguchi Y. (1994) Hereditary nephrotic syndrome with progression to renal failure in a mouse model (ICGN strain): clinical study. Nephron 68(2):239-44. [PMID:7830863]
5. Ogura A, Fujimura H, Asano T, Koura M, Naito I, and Kobayashi Y. (1995) Early ultrastructural glomerular alterations in neonatal nephrotic mice (ICGN strain). Vet. Pathol. 32(3):321-3. [PMID:7604502]
6. Uchio K, Manabe N, Tamura K, Miyamoto M, Yamaguchi M, Ogura A, Yamamoto Y, and Miyamoto H. (2000) Decreased matrix metalloproteinase activity in the kidneys of hereditary nephrotic mice (ICGN strain). Nephron 86(2):145-51. [PMID:11014984]